Welding/cutting torch system holster

ABSTRACT

A holster for carrying a welding/cutting torch system comprising two bottles, an igniter, a torch and respective interconnecting hoses between respective valves for the two bottles and the torch, the holster having a main panel serving as a back panel of the holster and two separate bottle pouches attached to a front side of the main panel. Each bottle pouch has an open top sized and configured to slide and store therein respective welding/cutting bottles leaving an upper portion of the bottles extending above the open top. An igniter pouch and torch pouch are included which are sized and configured to slide and store therein the corresponding igniter and torch. The holster is strapped to a user&#39;s thigh and may also be secured using straps from the main panel to a user&#39;s waist belt or draped around a shoulder. A pouch is also provided for storing the system hoses.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a holster with pockets to carry a portable welding/cutting torch system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A welding torch normally comes with two canisters, a hose with a beak or nozzle tip, and an igniter. In retail stores, it is usually sold with a plastic stand, tote or holder to keep the bottles upright on the floor. The whole package is clumsy and not very practical when you have to move around, especially when working off ladders. In military applications, the existing portable systems are cumbersome for entry teams to carry around for use in breaching gates, doors or locks.

What is needed is a holster system that be attached to the thigh of a user that carries both bottles, an igniter, a torch and the interconnecting hoses from the bottles to the torch, with a separate pouch for excess hose between the torch and the respective bottle valve connections.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is a welding/cutting torch system holster that allows a user to use the torch system with one hand when on a ladder or for a military entry team to breach a gate or lock while on the move.

The holster is strapped around the thigh of a user using one or two straps. The upper part of the holster can be strapped to a waist belt of the user again using one or two straps or a single strap may be used that extends from one side of the upper part of the holster main panel around the shoulder and back to another side of the upper part of the holster main panel.

Separate pouches are also provided for the igniter and for the torch itself. Preferably a separate pouch is also provided to insert excess hoses between the torch and the respective bottle valve connections.

The holster material may be made from a variety of materials that are durable, flexible for compact folding and storage and suitable for the intended use such as a nylon canvass material. The back panel is preferably padded to allow for a snug comfortable wrap around fit around the thigh. The two primary pouches are also preferably padded to minimize impact shocks should a user bump into a hard object.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of the invention ready for use attached to the thigh of a user depicting the use of two belt straps and two thigh straps;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another example of the invention ready for use attached to the thigh of a user depicting the use of one belt strap and one thigh strap;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another example of the invention ready for use attached to the thigh of a user depicting the use of two thigh straps and one belt strap;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another example of the invention ready for use attached to the thigh of a user depicting the use of one thigh strap and two belt straps;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another example of the invention ready for use attached to the thigh of a user primarily intended to show the use of a shoulder strap in lieu of belt strap(s);

FIG. 6 is a side view of the invention depicting the torch storage pouch with the torch stored therein and the excess hose pouch with a portion of the torch hoses pushed therein; and

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 depicting the invention without the welding/cutting torch system components being shown.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-7 disclose various embodiments of the present invention, which is a holster for carrying a welding/cutting torch system comprising two bottles, an igniter, a torch and respective interconnecting hoses between respective valves for said two bottles and said torch, is depicted generally as 10. In FIGS. 1-5, the storage pouch for the torch is not visible because of the perspective view but FIGS. 6-7 show the side view of the invention 10 with all the possible pouches for the various welding/cutting torch system components.

The holster 10 is used for carrying a welding/cutting torch system comprising two bottles 12 a,12 b, an igniter 12 c, a torch 12 d and respective interconnecting hoses 12 f,12 f′ between respective valves 12 g,12 g′ for said two bottles 12 a,12 b and said torch 12 d.

The holster 10 has a main panel 14 serving as a back panel of said holster 10 and two separate bottle pouches 16 a,16 b attached to a front side of said main panel 14. Each bottle pouch 16 a,16 b has an open top 18 a,18 b and each pouch 16 a,16 b is sized and configured to slide and store therein respective welding/cutting bottles 12 a,12 b leaving an upper portion of said bottles 12 a,12 b extending above said open top 18 a,18 b. The bottom of each pouch 16 a,16 b is preferably at least partially closed off with a flexible material to prevent the bottles 12 a,12 b from sliding through and out of the bottle pouches 16 a,16 b.

An igniter pouch 20 is included and is sized and configured to slide and store therein an igniter 12 c and a torch pouch 22 is also included which has an open top 24 and is sized and configured to slide and store therein the torch 12 d. Preferably, the igniter pouch 20 has a partially closed bottom to prevent the igniter 12 c from sliding through and out of the igniter pouch 20. In addition, it is preferable to have a completely closed bottom portion of the torch pouch 22 to ensure that a user does not inadvertently come in contact with a tip of the torch 12 d that is still hot from being recently used. The igniter pouch 20 can be located in a desired location on the holster 10, however, one convenient location is on a front face of one of the separate bottle pouches 16 a,16 b as depicted in the drawings. The choice of which pouch 16 a,16 b chosen to attach the igniter pouch 20 is up to the manufacture. The location of the torch pouch 22 is also optional and may be located as well on a face of one of the bottle pouches 16 a,16 b. However, to protect the torch 12 d even further, it is advisable to locate the torch pouch 22 against the main panel 14 along side or adjacent to one of the bottle pouches 16 a,16 b as shown in FIGS. 6-7.

The holster 10 further includes means 26 for securing the holster to a user's thigh 28. There are several ways known in the art to attach a side holster 10 to a person's thigh 28. Most, if not all, include the use of one or more straps. The strap securement can be done using straps with hook and loop type of fastening features. The strap length is adjustable by the overlapping of the hook and loop fastening features. By way of example only, the drawings depict another technique of using straps with snap together mechanical fastening features, in which case the strap length is separately adjustable using the mechanical fastening features that allows for the strap to be extended through a loop portion of such typical mechanical fastening features. This type of strapping is typically used on travel cases, baby car seats, and other similar articles of manufacture.

In the drawings, one example of the means 26 for securing the holster 10 to a user's thigh 28 utilizes an adjustable thigh strap 30 attached on one end to a side 14 a of the main panel 14 and has a length sufficient to wrap around a user's thigh 28 for mechanical attachment adjacent an opposite side 14 b of the main panel 14. Another example of the means 26 for securing the holster 10 to the user's thigh 28 utilizes two parallel adjustable thigh straps 32 a,32 b, where each of parallel adjustable thigh strap 32 a,32 b is attached on one end to a side 14 a of the main panel 14 and has a length sufficient to wrap around the user's thigh 28 for mechanical attachment adjacent an opposite side 14 b of the main panel 14.

It is understood that a certain length of hose 12 f,12 f′ is needed to reach from the bottle valves 12 g,12 g′ to the torch 12 d so that the torch 12 d can reach its intended location for welding and/or cutting. Accordingly, there is an expected amount of hose 12 f,12 f′ that needs to be placed in a location so as not to interfere with the movement of the user when not using the welding/cutting system. Accordingly, a hose pouch 34 is included with the holster 10 that has an open top 34 a and an open bottom 34 b. The hose pouch 34 is sized and configured to slide and store therein portions of the respective interconnecting hoses 12 f,12 f′ between the respective bottle valves 12 g,12 g′ for the two bottles 12 a,12 b and the torch 12 d. Typically, the hoses 12 f,12 f′ can be folded together and slid into the pouch 34 so that the pouch 34 acts as a tie to hold the hoses against the holster 10. The hose pouch 34 may located against the main panel 14 adjacent one of the bottle pouches 16 a,16 b such as on the opposite side of the torch pouch 22. However, doing so may cause the main panel 14 to be relatively wide and cumbersome when wrapping around the thigh 28. Accordingly, it is preferable that the hose pouch 34 be located on a side of one of the separate bottle pouches 16 a,16 b as depicted in the drawings.

Although the holster 10 is always secured to the thigh 28, it may also be desirable to further secure the holster 10 to another part of the anatomy of the user such as a waist 36 as in FIGS. 1-4 and 6-7 or shoulder 38 sin FIG. 5.

There are several means 40 for securing the holster 10 to a user's waist belt 42 known in the art, such as one or more tabs extending from the main panel 14 with snaps on a belt 42 or with one or more tabs extending from a belt 42 with snaps on the main panel 14. Another known method is the use of a strap with hook and loop type of fastening features where the strap or straps extend from the main panel to the belt and back. The snaps and/or hook and loop fasteners are not shown as these types of connections are well understood visually in the art.

As depicted in FIG. 2, one preferable means 40 for securing the holster 10 to the user's waist belt 42 includes the use of an adjustable belt strap 44 attached on one end to an upper portion 14 c of the main panel 14. The strap 44 has a length sufficient to loop around the user's waist belt 42. A mechanical disconnect component 46 such as those previously described herein allow for easy securement and adjustment in length of the strap 44. Another preferable means 40 for securing the holster 10 to the user's waist belt 42 utilizes two parallel adjustable belt straps 48 a,48 b, where each of the belt straps 48 a,48 b are attached on one end to an upper portion 14 c of the main panel 14 and each strap 48 a,48 b has a length sufficient to loop around the user's waist belt 42. Mechanical disconnect components 50 a,50 b such as those previously described herein allow for easy securement and adjustment in length of the straps 48 a,48 b.

If preferred by the user, an adjustable shoulder strap 52 may be provided. The strap 52 is sized and configured in length to be draped around a user's shoulder 38. The adjustable shoulder strap 52 is attached on one end to an upper portion 14 c of the main panel 14 and is attached on its opposite end to the upper portion 14 c of the main panel 14.

The main panel 14 can be made from several known durable, flexible for compact folding and storage and suitable for the intended use. Examples of such materials include nylon canvass material, and materials typically used by police and military personnel such as KEVLAR® material, NOMEX® material and other military grade materials. The back or main panel 14 is preferably padded to allow for a snug comfortable wrap around fit around the thigh 28. The two primary bottle pouches 16 a,16 b are also preferably padded to minimize impact shocks or cushioning an impact of the holster 10 should a user bump into a hard object when moving around. Pouches can be formed by stitching, adhesive seams, and other methods typically used for such working belt or shoulder hung holsters.

An optional characteristic is the providing of a detachment feature of the adjustable shoulder strap 52 where the strap 52 can be removed from the holster 10 by disconnecting the strap 52 from the main panel 14 for use of the holster 10 without the adjustable shoulder strap 52, by using mechanical disconnect component 46. Similarly, the adjustable belt straps 44 or 48 a,48 b may be detachable using mechanical disconnect components 46 or 50 a,50 b from the main panel 14 for use of the holster 10 without the adjustable belt strap 44 or 48 a,48 b.

It should be understood that the preceding is merely a detailed description of one or more embodiments of this invention and that numerous changes to the disclosed embodiments can be made in accordance with the disclosure herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The preceding description, therefore, is not meant to limit the scope of the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is to be determined only by the appended claims and their equivalents. 

1. A holster for carrying a welding/cutting torch system comprising two bottles, an igniter, a torch and respective interconnecting hoses between respective valves for said two bottles and said torch, the holster comprising: a main panel serving as a back panel of said holster; two separate bottle pouches attached to a front side of said main panel, each bottle pouch having an open top being sized and configured to slide and store therein respective welding/cutting bottles leaving an upper portion of said bottles extending above said open top; an igniter pouch sized and configured to slide and store therein said igniter; a torch pouch having an open top and sized and configured to slide and store therein said torch; and means for securing said holster to a user's thigh.
 2. The holster according to claim 1, further comprising: a hose pouch having an open top and an open bottom, said hose pouch being sized and configured to slide and store therein portions of said respective interconnecting hoses between said respective valves for said two bottles and said torch.
 3. The holster according to claim 1, further comprising: means for securing said holster to a user's waist belt.
 4. The holster according to claim 1, further comprising: an adjustable shoulder strap sized and configured in length to be draped around a user's shoulder, said adjustable shoulder strap being attached on one end to an upper portion of said main panel and further being attached on its opposite end to said upper portion of said main panel.
 5. The holster according to claim 3, wherein said means for securing said holster to said user's waist belt comprises an adjustable belt strap attached on one end to an upper portion of said main panel and having a length sufficient to loop around said user's waist belt.
 6. The holster according to claim 3, wherein said means for securing said holster to said user's waist belt comprises two parallel adjustable belt straps, each of said belt straps being attached on one end to an upper portion of said main panel and having a length sufficient to loop around said user's waist belt.
 7. The holster according to claim 1, wherein said means for securing said holster to said user's thigh comprises an adjustable thigh strap attached on one end to a side of said main panel and having a length sufficient to wrap around said user's thigh for mechanical attachment adjacent an opposite side of said main panel.
 8. The holster according to claim 1, wherein said means for securing said holster to said user's thigh comprises two parallel adjustable thigh straps, each of said parallel adjustable thigh straps being attached on one end to a side of said main panel and having a length sufficient to wrap around said user's thigh for mechanical attachment adjacent an opposite side of said main panel.
 9. The holster according to claim 1, wherein said igniter pouch is located on a front face of one of said separate bottle pouches.
 10. The holster according to claim 1, wherein said torch pouch is located on said main panel and adjacent one of said separate bottle pouches.
 11. The holster according to claim 2, wherein said hose pouch is located on a side of one of said separate bottle pouches.
 12. The holster according to claim 1, wherein said main panel is made from a padded material for providing a more comfortable fit around said user's thigh.
 13. The holster according to claim 12, wherein said two separate bottle pouches are made from a padded material for cushioning an impact of the holster against a hard object when said user is moving.
 14. The holster according to claim 4, wherein said adjustable shoulder strap is detachable from said main panel for use of said holster without said adjustable shoulder strap.
 15. The holster according to claim 5, wherein said adjustable belt strap is detachable from said main panel for use of said holster without said adjustable belt strap.
 16. The holster according to claim 6, wherein said two adjustable belt straps are each detachable from said main panel for use of said holster without said two adjustable belt straps. 